1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to stands and containers, and in particular to a convertible stand and container for medical specimen tubes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Stands, containers and other devices for receiving and enclosing objects are well known and a variety of different designs have previously been implemented to satisfy the requirements of particular applications. Containers are often designed to protect their contents, such as a mailing container which permits the mailing of breakable items.
Other devices have been proposed which function as stands for supporting objects in desired orientations. For example, vessels and receptacles for receiving fluids are often mounted in a particular orientation for convenience while transferring fluids, recording data, etc.
Medical diagnostic and testing work often involves the collection of fluid specimens from patients. For example, blood and breath tests are often performed by obtaining the necessary specimens from patients and sending them to testing laboratories for analysis. The specimens are often mailed in tubes from testing locations, such as physicians' offices, to centralized testing laboratories. Such testing specialization can reduce the costs associated with medical testing because well-equipped laboratories can analyze specimens efficiently.
However, a problem with transporting specimens is that specimen receivers, which often comprise glass vacuum tubes, are susceptible to breakage in transit. Moreover, for accurate analysis the specimen tubes must be carefully handled and identified to ensure that they are associated with the right individual and that adequate tests are performed to confirm the results of a medical procedure. For example, medical procedures are often monitored by taking "baseline" samples before treatment and post-treatment samples at a predetermined time interval after treatment to determine effectiveness.
Kits are available for taking medical samples and include specimen tubes for receiving same. Since the specimens tend to look alike, the tubes must be marked or somehow identified with such information as the patient's name, the date taken, baseline or post-treatment, etc. Therefore, there is a need for a device for identifying specimen tubes with certain pertinent data.
Still further, it is desirable to provide a device for supporting the specimen tubes in an upright orientation during the testing process. Specimen tube stands are available for this purpose, but specimen tubes placed therein would still be susceptible to misidentification when mailed. To overcome this problem considerable care is required on the part of lab technicians and medical technicians. Therefore, there is a need for a device or system which simplifies the handling of specimen tubes when the specimens are collected and when they are mailed, and also to reduce the risk of misidentification. Such a device would preferably provide a convenient receptacle or stand for the specimen tubes during the specimen collection and analysis phases and would facilitate mailing, transporting and storing the specimen tubes in a protected enclosure. A convertible device for supporting the specimen tubes during collection and analysis procedures, and for enclosing the test tubes for transport or storage, would be particularly desirable. Heretofore there has not been available such a device with the advantages and features of the present invention. The present invention addresses the shortcomings of the prior art.